Rusty bush lark

The rusty bush lark (Calendulauda rufa), also known as the rusty lark is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae found in the Sahel region of north-central Africa.

Rusty bush lark
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Alaudidae
Genus:	Calendulauda
Species:	C. rufa
Binomial name
Calendulauda rufa (Lynes, 1920)
Subspecies
See text

Taxonomy and systematics

The rusty bush lark was formerly placed in the genus Mirafra. It was moved to Calendulauda based on its vocalizations and plumage combined with the results of a large molecular genetic study of the Alaudidae by Per Alström and collaborators that was published in 2023.^[2][3]

Subspecies

Three subspecies are recognized:^[2]

• C. r. nigriticola (Bates, GL, 1932) – Mali to Niger
• C. r. rufa (Lynes, 1920) – Chad and west Sudan
• C. r. lynesi (Grant, CHB & Mackworth-Praed, 1933) – central Sudan

Distribution and habitat

The range of the rusty bush lark is large, with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 470,000 km². It is typically found inhabiting the dry savannah ecoregions of Chad, Mali, Niger, Sudan, and Togo.^[1]